Donald Trump & Family Sued By New York Attorney General And Here Is Why. The family firm is accused of “staggering” real estate fraud, according to the $250 million complaint.
Donald Trump’s legal and public reckoning is still ongoing years after his last day in office as president of the United States, as recently highlighted by warrants against him for nuclear documents. The business mogul, his children Eric, Ivanka, and Donald Jr., as well as the Trump Organization, are the targets of a $250 million lawsuit launched this week by the New York Attorney General Letitia James accusing them of “staggering” fraud in the family real estate business.
During a three-year investigation into crimes like conspiracy, bank fraud, manipulating business records, insurance fraud, and issuing misleading financial statements, James’ office discovered possible criminal offenses. The former president and his firm are charged in a 220-page civil lawsuit filed in Manhattan Supreme Court of falsely exaggerating their cherished possessions, including golf courses and homes, in order to receive advantageous tax benefits and loans.
The Attorney General stated at a press conference that “Donald Trump falsely exaggerated his net worth by billions of dollars to unjustly enrich himself, deceive the system, and so cheat us all.” She said, “Claiming you have money you don’t have amounts to the art of the steal, not the art of the trade,”
If the lawsuit is successful, Trump would be prohibited from operating a business in New York or from purchasing commercial property for the following five years, whether personally or through his corporation. The Internal Revenue Service and federal prosecutors in New York’s Southern District have been referred the case by James’ office, despite the fact that the investigation is civil and cannot result in criminal charges.
This lawsuit, which claims that defendants “engaged in many acts of fraud and misrepresentation in the preparation of Mr. Trump’s annual statements of financial status… extending at least the years 2011 through 2021,” also names former Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg as a defendant.
James claims that the defendants inflated assets at least 200 times in a deceptive or misleading manner, earning profits of at least $250 million as a result. These assertions were made in Trump’s “Statements of Financial Condition,” which were provided to businesses like Cushman & Wakefield, Deutsche Bank, and Mazars Group for loan and insurance applications. They led readers to believe that Trump was earning many times more than he actually did.
According to James, “every assertion was personally certified as accurate by Mr. Trump or by one of his trustees.” James uses Trump’s 40 Wall Street property as an example of overvaluing his assets, lying about the amount of cash he had on hand, and disobeying legal constraints on development rights. According to court records, he appraised it for $220 million in 2012, but valued it at $530 million in 2013. Additionally, he added 20,000 square feet to the square footage of the Trump Tower triplex, inflating its worth to a previously unheard-of $327 million.
Today, I filed a lawsuit against Donald Trump for engaging in years of financial fraud to enrich himself, his family, and the Trump Organization.
There aren't two sets of laws for people in this nation: former presidents must be held to the same standards as everyday Americans.
— NY AG James (@NewYorkStateAG) September 21, 2022
James also asserted that by using this strategy, the Trump Organization was able to reduce its federal tax liabilities. For instance, in 2011, when building the Seven Springs estate in Westchester County, Eric Trump collaborated with a third-party tax consultant to fulfill a contribution for a conservation easement in order to collect federal tax deductions. Eric allegedly minimized his tax liability by more than $3.5 million by invoking the Fifth Amendment when questioned about the easement contribution.
Around 2020, Ivanka and Donald Jr. were joined to the case, and all three of the kids have worked as executives for the business. Both of them and their father have attempted to appear in depositions without success, and Trump has exercised his Fifth Amendment right to remain silent.
The response from Trump’s team to these allegations has been hostile. James’ case “is neither focused on the facts nor the law — rather, it is solely focused on advancing the Attorney General’s political agenda,” according to Trump attorney Alina Habba, who spoke to The Post.
She stated, “It is quite evident that the Attorney General’s Office has overstepped its legislative powers by investigating transactions where there has been absolutely no crime.” “We are convinced that our legal system won’t tolerate this unfettered abuse of power, and we look forward to defending our client against each and every one of the Attorney General’s baseless allegations,” the firm stated.
On the Truth Social platform, Trump referred to James’ lawsuit as a “witch hunt,” while his former attorney general Bill Barr dismissed it as a “political hit job.” He told Fox News that James does not have enough evidence to make a criminal case, and that he thinks Trump would gain sympathy for this case since it is yet another manifestation of his “Trump derangement syndrome.” He said, “I don’t think it’s going to go any farther.”
These offenses hardly “touch the surface of the malfeasance,” according to James. The New York Attorney General’s Office also wants to permanently bar Trump and his three involved children from serving as directors of any local businesses. She also demands that Weisselberg and Trump Organization controller Jeffrey McConney forfeit $250 million in fraudulent earnings and forfeit all financial authority over any New York corporation. She further requests that audited annual financial documents of Trump’s net worth be provided to the corporations who have already received statements of his financial position, and that an impartial monitor oversee operations for the following five years. Before any of these limitations are put into force, a judge must give his or her approval.
After some of these allegations were revealed to Congress by Trump’s former personal attorney Michael Cohen, James started looking into the company in 2019. In 2020, she filed a lawsuit on the grounds that she believed Eric Trump and the business were obstructing the probe. The AG’s office has additionally turned down at least one settlement proposal from Trump’s team, saying to reporters on Wednesday that “[their] doors are always open” and that they “rejected settlement offers that they submitted.” On Wednesday, a representative for the US Attorney’s office for the Southern District of New York acknowledged knowledge of the lawsuit but made no more remarks.
This complaint follows Trump’s legal troubles at the Mar-a-Lago property in Florida, which FBI agents searched on August 8 to see if he was improperly concealing sensitive legal records. Trump’s attorneys were in Brooklyn federal court on Tuesday as Judge Raymond Dearie determined which of the 11,000 documents confiscated could qualify for attorney-client or executive privilege, despite the president’s claims that they were declassified before being moved.
Next month, the Trump Organization will go on trial for alleged tax evasion, and as part of a plea agreement with the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, Weisselberg will testify against the business. In response to James’ lawsuit, Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg stated that authorities are “actively and ongoingly” investigating whether the group assisted top executives in underreporting their government salaries for 15 years in order to evade taxes. Trump is not named as a defendant in the lawsuit. Donald Trump & Family Sued By New York Attorney General And Here Is Why.